For those who know what the romance of the road is, the choice of equipment is a very responsible matter. Tent, backpack, sleeping bag, shoes, clothes, dishes - all these things are an integral part of a comfortable life in nature. The absence or failure of one of them may call into question the continuation of the journey. And for a reason, the tent takes the first place in this list. This is protection from the weather, and a place where food and dry things are stored, and just a cozy house where you can relax and unwind.
How to choose a tent? First you need to decide how often and in what conditions it will be used. It makes no sense to buy an extreme-series tent, designed for large mountains, if you plan to go out with it into the forest on May holidays and go out to sea twice during the summer. For these purposes, the model is simpler in terms of materials and more spacious. It is worth paying attention to the design with two vestibules, one of which can be used to store things, backpacks and products.
How to choose a tourist tent for those who often go to the mountains? Three points are important here - weight, materials and construction. Everyone who knows what a backpack is behind his back understands how important the weight of the equipment is. There are tourists who count every gram when going on a hike, and this, of course, has a rational grain. But this issue must be approached reasonably.
If there is only one arc in the tent, it will, of course, be lighter than the standard one, but try putting it on an icy slope into which the stakes do not drive in, and even putting it so that it can withstand the heavy wind at a height. The same applies to materials. Think about how a tent, like silk, will react to mountain weather, due to which you are going to save 200 grams of weight. And before choosing a tent, decide what is more important for you - a lighter backpack behind your back or a reliable house in the mountains. In any case, the trade will satisfy your request, since the choice of equipment in modern stores is simply huge.
Those who go to large mountains are unlikely to wonder how to choose a tent. But still, we briefly list the main features of the extreme series models. Tents for high-altitude ascents are made as stable and durable as possible due to the specific weather conditions in the highlands. At the same time, they should be as light as possible, since staying at an altitude of more than 5 km is already a serious burden on the body, and any weight here seems several times harder than in the conditions of a plain or low mountains. In the manufacture of such models using the latest technology, so they cost much more than any other tents.
The most important point to think about before choosing a tent is the number of people who will live in it. There are models for one, two, three, four or more people. There are even two- and three-room “houses” of a two-meter height, in which you can not only sleep, but also cook, work on a laptop and go to full height. These tents are good for a long family vacation. They are very comfortable, but have a number of disadvantages - high price, huge weight (tens of kilograms) and the complexity of the assembly.
Regardless of the design and purpose of the tent, the materials of which it is made are of great importance when choosing. It is advisable to give preference to models with duralumin arcs - they are more expensive, but much stronger than plastic, “live” longer and better tolerate temperature extremes and mechanical stresses. The seams on the tent should be glued. It is good if YKK zippers are used . As for the waterproofness of the tent, it is indicated by the numbers 1000, 2000, 3000 (millimeters of precipitation), etc. It’s clear that 1000 mm is also a waterproof tent. These figures, rather, indicate the durability of the awning. The higher they are, the longer the fabric will retain its waterproof properties.
In tourist and sports stores, products of various brands are presented: Bask, Marmot, Saleva, Tatonka, Tramp. All of them produce equipment for all types of outdoor activities. Which tent to choose is up to you. Most importantly, remember that it will become your home in nature for many years.